The Sealing of a Soul
by Kaiyo No Hime
Summary: Yugi was sealed within the puzzle by Yami, but has come back once more, to protect Yami's son, Shinta..... I suck at summeries! COMPLETE!
1. Sealing of a Soul

Well, I've returned once more to write more Yugi angst!!! 

Read and enjoy, if you will!! 

Misc Hobbit Cow: Moo. 

~~~~~ 

** The Sealing of a Soul **

Yugi rolled over restlessly, finding no comfort in the bed, even as the darkness of two am spilled into the room. The little blonde sighed, pulling the covers tighter around him, utterly exhausted, and utterly unable to fall asleep. 

'It's no use.' Yugi thought to himself, careful to keep his mental voice low, so not to wake Yami. 

The little blond clutched the golden millennium puzzle gently in his hands, and felt his form drift into his soul room, finally relaxed, resting gently in the puzzle.... 

  


Yami's eyes shot opened, and he looked at the clock, the red number reading 2:01. He looked around, the sleep fading fast from his eyes, but saw nothing wrong. With a gentle grace, he slipped from his darkned room to the next, opening the door on his hikari, only to find that Yugi was not there. 

//Aibou? Where are you?// Yami sent out the thought worridly, checking under the bed, to see if the small boy had crawled up under there. Yugi had, as of late, been found by Yami curled up and sleeping in odd places. 

/I'm.... in the puzzle..../ Yugi replied sleepily, not really bothering to attempt to wake up. Yami sighed, looking at the puzzle resting on his bare chest. 

//Why are you in there? You should sleep in your own bed, Aibou, I'm sure it's more comfortable.// Yami sighed, rearranging the blankets, waiting for Yugi to appear. He heard Yugi turn over within his soul room, but the little blonde did not appear. 

/I can't sleep out there..../ Yugi yawned, letting his mind drift gently back to sleep. Yami sighed, and headed back to his own room, his slippers scuffing the floor silently. 

//Okay, but just this once hikari. I don't want you making a habit out of it.// Yami replied mentally, aware that the little one was already asleep. 

'Yugi, what's wrong with you? You've never drifted entirily into the puzzle before...' Yami wondered as he fell asleep, clutching the puzzle to his chest worridly.... 

  


Yami woke up slowly the next morning, stretching his arms out, his fingers cramped from clutching the puzzle so tightly. Yami frowned sleepily, holding the golden item up to the sunny light that streamed into the room, highlighting the gentle egyptian curves of the puzzle. 

'Why was I holding it so.....' Yami's eyes sprang open suddenly as he realized exactly why he had been so protective of the puzzle in his sleep. 

//AIBOU!!!!// Yami shouted, throwing his full voice into the open mental link. He felt Yugi stir within the puzzle, and Yami stood up suddenly, still worried. 

/Just five more minutes..../ Yugi muttered sleepily. 

//Aibou, it's morning, you must come out! We will be late to school!// Yami shouted mentally, feeling Yugi's sluggish thoughts acknowledge him silently. 

/I'm coming, I'm coming.../ Yugi sighed, slowly fading from the puzzle into the real world, curled up in a little ball. Yami sighed, picking him up, the small blonde fitting easily into his arms. 

"You shouldn't sleep in the puzzle, hikari, it worries me. It wasn't designed to hold a human spirit for lengthy amounts of time." Yami whispered, carrying Yugi back to his own room. 

Yugi sighed, standing up wobbily on the ground, clutching Yami's arm for support. 

"But I like it in there. It's so much nicer than out here." Yugi mumbled, stepping over to his closet, and searching out his school uniform. Yami went pale, and mumbled unaudibly under his breath, leaving the young boy to dress on his own... 

  


'He shouldn't even be able to slip completely into the puzzle, never mind actually perfer it!' Yami shouted at himself as he stared at the white board in his history class, trying, and failing, to concentrate on his teachers speech. 

'And he's been so tired, and so.... faded. By Ra!' Yami's head snapped up suddenly, his mind redrifting over his last thought. Yugi was fading into the puzzle, replacing Yami in the golden artifact even as Yami was replacing the young blonde in the real world.... 

  


"Yugi, hey, Earth to Yugi!" Joey shouted, waving his hands in front of his friends face. Yugi blinked several times, staring at Joey, confused. 

"What is it, Joey?" Yugi asked with a yawn, stretching his arms. The classroom was empty, and Yugi looked around confused. 

"Yug, it's lunch time! Jeez, and I thought I was a space case!" Joey joked, looking back at his friend as he went out the classroom door. "You comin?" 

"Yeah!" Yugi smiled, getting up, feeling very, very weary... 

  


Yami looked around the table, slightly disturbed as he saw Yugi, asleep, his food untouched. No one else seemed to notice, more intent on gossiping about a new gaming tournament. Yami ignored Tia as she tried flirting with him, resting his hand on his hikari's shoulder. 

"Yugi, are you all right?" Yami asked, shaking the little one gently. Yugi yawned, looking up at Yami with faded violet eyes, his mind almost dull. 

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired. I'm just a little tired." Yugi smiled sleepily, the lunch bell ringing in the background. 

//Aibou, I think you should go home, I'm worried. I....// Yami's thoughts were broken as Yugi ran from the room, his pace lopsided, heading back to class. 

/I'm fine Yami, don't worry about it!/ Yugi hollered cheerfully, clutching the puzzle around his neck. 

"Is something wrong, oh great Pharoh? You look like something didn't go your way, for once." Bakura smiled smugly, walking with Yami back to their class, a grade higher than Yugi and his friends. 

"It's nothing, tomb raider. It's nothing..." Yami whispered, more to himself than anything. He hid the desperate fear of Yugi's fading in the back of his mine, hoping that it was only a bout of the flu... 

  


"Grandpa! We're home!" Yami shouted, watching as Yugi merely slid onto the couch, his eyes fluttering closed. He had barely been able to stay awake during the walk home, and Yami was becoming more and more concerned. 

"Yugi, are you sure you're okay? You've been so tired, maybe you should take a few days off, and rest." Yami whispered, lowering him onto the couch, next to his lighter half. Yugi shook his head weakly, running his hands lightly over the golden artifact on his neck. 

"I'm fine Yami, I just need to rest. I just need to rest, in the puzzle...." Yugi sighed, and Yami slapped him, hard. Yugi's violet eyes went wide, tears creeping up at the edges as he stared at his other half, in fear. 

"No! You will not go into the puzzle! Yugi, it's not good for you, you can't rest in the puzzle, can't you see how it's affecting you, fading you!?" Yami pleaded, his voice cracking as he choked back sobbs. 

"Yami, it's okay.... I just need to rest for a while, and then I'll be fine, you'll see, I'll be fine..." Yugi smiled, higging his darker half weakly. 

Yami shook his head, clutching Yugi in his arms, tears running down his face as he realized what he must do. He had sworn to protect his aibou, and protect him he would, even if it meant sacrificing his spirit, and breaking the puzzle. He higged Yugi warmly, and clutched the puzzle in his powerful grip, preparing to crush the artifact. 

"I'm sorry Yugi, but this be done, for your own sake...." Yami smiled, his grip on the puzzle tightening. 

"Just let me rest a little, just a little, please Yami..." Yugi sighed, and Yami's eyes went wide as he felt Yugi fade into the puzzle, even as his own grip shattered, breaking the golden artifact back into its nearly unsolvable form. 

"Yugi? YUGI!!!!!" Yami shrieked, fingering the pieces, trying to piece them back together, even as the tears blurred his vision. 

His aibou was now sealed within the puzzle, until someone could solve it once more..... 

  


So, what did you think? 

Sorry that it's so bad, I just typed the idea out spur of the moment!! 

R&R for more, if you would!!! 


	2. Awakening of the Light

Well, the authoress must make the casual, mandatory remarks, which, as it has been so kindly brought to my attention, I have not made in the past. 

I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, but I do own a dollar twenty-five in nickels, and a cup-o-noodle.... 

So, without further ado, here's the fanfiction!!! 

** Chapter 2 **

The Light Awakens 

Yugi mumbled to himself, curled into a ball, the darkness crawling around him, his body frozen to the touch as it drifted inside the sealed puzzle, tears highlighting his violet eyes. He couldn't move, couldn't feel, couldn't breathe. His soul felt charred, as if it had survived the greatest fire unscathed, only to incinerate itself five times over the next day. 

A golden light flooded through the shaodwed realm, and Yugi looked up, only to find himself standing in his own room, in front of a small boy, a boy that resembled him in many, many ways. 

"Who, who are you?" the boy asked, his voice wavering, clutching the ancient artifact in his hands. Yugi smiled, all memories of his past floating away as he held out his hand in greeting. 

"You may call me Yugi. And who might you be?" Yugi asked, his voice soft and flexible, holding an undercurrent in its waves. Like honey and steel. 

"I'm... I'm Shinta. How did you come out of the puzzle?" Shinta asked, looking the puzzle over in his hands. Yugi laughed, and tied the artifact around the little boys neck, so that he wouldn't drop it or lose it. 

"I was sealed away in the puzzle a long, long time ago." Yugi smiled, sitting down next to the boy. Shinta smiled, taking a liking to the spirit of the Milennium item readily. 

"Shinta, we're going to be late to the movies....." Shinta's father threw open the door, and stared at the two boys in horror. 

"Dad, this is Yugi, and he's the spirit of the puzzle!" Shinta giggled happily, holding up the eygiptian artifact, as if it were sure-fire proof. Shinta's father merely stared at Yugi, tears coming to his crimson eyes. 

"Aibou, is that you, is it really you?" Yami stuttered, picking up the short blonde in a bear hug, sobbing. 

Yugi, having no memory, and no idea who Yami was, struggled madly to get out of the embrace, without hurting Shinta's father in any way, refraining from swearing in front of his young aibou. Finally, giving up on the peaceful approach, Yugi kicked Yami deftly in the knee, and stood in front of the trembling Yami, his eyes flashing anger and confusion. 

"I don't know who you are, or why you decided to attempt to strangle me, but I will not allow you to harm Shinta!" Yugi spat, his temper rising. He was becoming quite confused, and for some reason that he could not place, quite sad. 

"Yugi, that's my Dad! He wasn't attacking you, he was just being weird. He does that a lot." Shinta said, fingering the puzzle. Yugi looked back at the smaller boy, and nodded, sitting back down on the bed. 

"Does he attack people randomly a lot?" Yugi asked, his eyes a faded violet once more. Shinta sighed, and shook his head. Yami just stared at the two boys, tears running down his face. 

"Yugi, don't you remember anything, at all?" Yami whispered, falling to his knees, staring at his hands. 

It was his hands that had sealed the smaller boy away, his hands that had destroyed his own life, and his hands that Yugi claimed he had attacked him with. He had waited for so long for the puzzle to be solved, and now that it was, Yugi had been reawakened, without his memory. Yami sobbed, looking up at his precious hikari. His Yugi no longer existed, his spirit had been claimed by the millenium item just as his had so many years before. 

"Dad, you all right?" Shinta asked, going to his fathers side, trying to comfort him. Yami shook his head, standing up. 

"I'm fine Shinta. Yugi, I welcome you to the Motou house, you may stay in the room next to Shinta's. I will see to it that you are registered for school in the morning." Yami whispered, slipping silently out of the room, and closing the door behind him. 

"Jeez, I've never seen Dad act that weird, its like he saw a ghost, or something! Want some cookies, Mom just baked a batch." Shinta asked, opening the door. Yugi smiled, and nodded, following the small red headed boy into the kitchen, to munch on cookies and milk.... 

  


Well, how did you like Chapter 2? 

I'm sorry that it sucks, I typed it up at school during my break, but I hope it was worth it!!! 

R&R if you will!!! 


	3. The Long Lost Cousin

I noticed a small, tiny, ity-bity little boo-boo I made at the end of the last chapter!! *oops* 

And, as I don't have the time to retype it right now, I'll correct it right here, since it was only in the last sentance. 

Shinta comments that his mother had just baked a batch of cookies. As you'll find out in this chapter, Shinta's mother is dead. 

So, it was actually Yami who had baked a batch of cookies!!! ^_^ So, just ignore my comments about Shinta's mother being alive, please!!! 

Mmmmm... Yami cookies..... 

  
** Chapter Three: **

The Long Lost Cousin 

  


Yami stared at the small boy, tucked into the bed that had once been in his own room. Light streamed in faintly through the window, the street lamp outside blaring its presence. Yami sighed, tempted to walk into the room, to pick up the small blonde, and sob. 

After all these years of putting the past behind him, of constantly reminding himself that Fate had willed Yugi to be sealed away, that it wasn't his fault, he had him back. He had his hikari within reach, but he could do nothing about it. 

Yugi did not remember him, and had no link with the older man any longer. The small blonde was Shinta's aibou now, his yami. And there was nothing Yami could do about it, but watch. 

It was if a nightmare was playing in front of his eyes, over and over and over. His dream was filled with shadowy darkness, everything he had ever wished for had been smashed against the cliffs of Fate. 

"Yugi, oh Yugi..." Yami sighed sadly, closing the door once more, a tear streaking down his face. He looked in on Shinta briefly, placing his red headed son back under the sheets, and securing the pillow under his head with a brief smile. 

Shinta was all he had left, after Anitra had died. Shinta was all he lived for, and now even he had found a way to torture Yami. Yami kissed the boy on the forhead, and headed back to his cold, lonely bed.... 

  


"Come on Yugi, I can't wait to introduce you to all the kids at school!!! You'll love it!!" Shinta chirped happily, stuffing yet another spoon full of over sugared cereal into his mouth. Yugi laughed, and smiled, warming Yami's as he watched the two boys. 

"Now, remember Yugi, you're a long lost cousin, on my side of the family." Yami said, his face a mask of stern cheerfulness. Yugi smiled, his violet eyes glowing warmly, and nodded. 

"Yes, Uncle Yami!" Yugi chipped, straightening the leather choker on his neck for the umpteenth time. Shinta sighed, and grabbed his older 'cousins' arm. 

"Come on, we're going to be late!!!" Shinta shouted, and Yugi hurried behind the red head, bolting out the door with his school bag. 

"Good luck you two!" Yami shouted, watching them disappear into the distance. "Good luck Yugi, my aibou." Yami whispered, falling to the floor behind the closed door, sobbing... 

  


"Dude, you have a cousin!?" Seita (*No relation to Seito, it just so happens I like this name!! Watch 'Grave of the Fireflies', and you'll understand!!*) eyed Yugi, stunned. The two boys looked very much alike, the same eyes, the same air of innocence, the same hair style. Of course, while Yugi sported the odd three colored spike look, Shinta's was merely an intense crimson. 

Shinta sighed, shaking his head again. He had explained to Seita three times that morning that Yugi was his cousin, and his friend still did not seem to understand the concept of relatives. 

"Seita, you want that I should clean your clock?" Shinta asked, shaking his fist with mock anger. Setsuko, coming up behind Seita, draped her arms around her friend, and stared at Yugi. 

"So, he a cousin of yours, or somethin'? He's kinda cute!" Setsuko smiled as Yugi blushed a very intense crimson. 

//Shinta, please, could we go to class now!// Yugi begged mentally, edging away from Shinta's large group of friends, curious about the new comer/ 

/Sure thing, Yugi. The bells gonna ring soon anways./ Shinta smiled, and waved a path through the crowd. 

//Thank You.// Yugi sighed, following his hikari into the classroom.... 

  


"Watch it, short!" a girl with snowy hair snapped, holding up her fist. Yugi ducked away as Shinta dragged him toward his table. 

"Sorry!" Yugi called back, and the white hair girl growled, held back by a group of friends. Shinta sighed, sitting his yami down, and pulled out his paper lunch. 

"Yugi, that was Tsuru, just stay away from her and you'll be fine. She's got one mean tamper." Shinta explained. Seita rolled his eyes. 

"There's the understatement of the year! She curdle water just by glaring at it!" Seita joked, tossing his pudding cup to Setsuko. Setsuko tossed a can of pop back over to him, much to the displeasure of the people beneath the lunch exchange. 

"She seems... familiar..." Yugi thought to himself, unable to grasp the memory that was sifting in his unconscious. After a few minutes of concentration, he shrugged his shoulders, and gave up. 

/Uh... what were you doing? You looked like you were sitting through a math quiz!/ Shinta asked mentally. Yugi smiled. 

//Sorry, something was bugging at my mind, that's all. Hey, this is pretty good!!!// Yugi giggled giddily as he stuffed a chocolate-caramel-frappachino bar in his mouth. (*I know there's no such candy bar, but there should be!!!*) Everyone at the table stared at him nervously. 

"Dude, haven't you ever had a chocolate bar before!?" Seita asked, eyeing Yugi nervously as he looked for more chocolate. 

"Hey, don't you know? All long lost relatives come from outer Mongolia, and eat nothing but sticks and stones!!" Setsuko answered, smiling proudly as the entire table broke out into laughter. 

"Why me!?" Shinta mock sobbed into his hands, hiding his huge grin. Yugi looked over at him, concerned. 

//Is everything alright, hikari?// Yugi asked mentally. Shinta repreced his sigh. 

/Yes, Yugi, it was just a joke./ Shinta explained. Yugi nodded, the entire situation very familiar. As if he had done something similar in the past. 

Yugi shook his head, clearing it from the overy hyperd sugar-high, and the odd half-memories that seemed to be haunting him. 

The lunch bell rang, and everyone headed back to their classes, bemoaning the tortures of school.... 

  


"See ya later, guys!!" Shinta shouted, waving to his friends as he left their route, heading toward the Turtle Game Shop. His friends waved, and Yugi, holding yet another candy bar in his mouth, waved as well. 

They had discovered, or at least Setsuko had set upon it, that Yugi had a sweet tooth for chocolate, the size of Jupiter. And so, Shinta had also discovered that, no matter what was happening, his yami would drop everything for the precious sugary substance. Shinta sighed, and dragged Yugi back toward the game shop. 

"Dad, we're home!" Shinta yelled, attempting to throw the door open. 

However, it seemed that, much to Shinta's dismay, the door would not open. In fact, the door remained shut and locked, the store closed, and the lights off, no matter how many times the young red head rubbed his eyes. 

"Yugi, I'm worried. Dad never closes the shop early, ever." Shinta looked over at his other half, tears forming in his eyes. For his father, Yami, to close the shop early, or not even bother opening it in the first place, something must be dreadfully wrong.... 

  


So, is that enough of a cliff hanger for you? 

(*Ducks as misc objects go sailing by*) 

I'll try to update by Saterday, I promise!! 

So, once more, R&R please!! 


	4. Pained Hearts

I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. If I did, there would be a **_lot_** more angst!!! 

I do own a frozen Mounds bar though, and I'm not afraid to use it as a weapon!!! So Review at the end of the story!!!! 

  


** The Sealing of a Soul **

Chapter 4 

Pained Hearts 

  


"Dad! DAD!!!!" Shinta shouted, running through the empty rooms, leaving Yugi standing at the shops door. Yugi watched and listened, his nerves jumpy. Although he did not know his hikari's dad very well, it was still important that he be all right, the odd tingling in Yugi's mind sparking once more, setting Yugi even further on edge. 

The door swung open with a grunt, and Yugi twirled to meet the encroaching danger, his hands spread, a dark power surging through his system. 

With inhuman accuracy, Yugi let the darkness flow out, his eyes fading into a deep crimson as the power was released. 

Yami merely took the impact, his chest now very sore, and he was very much surprised. He had had no idea that his aibou had been able to summon such intense power. 

"Dad!" Shinta cried, running toward his father, knocking the grocery bags from his arms with a bear hug. Yami smiled, and hugged his son back, stroking his hair as he slipped to his knees, the door closed behind him as Yugi began to pick up the fallen groceries, and kind smile now on his face, replacing the cold strength that had been there moments before. Yami repressed a shudder, wondering where his little hikari had gained such dark power. 

"Shinta, what's wrong? Has something happened?" Yami asked, wiping the tears from his young sons face. Shinta smiled, and hiccuped. 

"The shop was closed, and I was afraid that something had happened!!" Shinta hiccuped again, burying his face in Yami's white work shirt. "Just like something had happened to Mama...." Yami sighed, picked up his son, and smiled. 

"No, I decided to close the shop for a day, and prepare some things for Yugi. I should have told you, I'm sorry. I'll at least leave a note next time." Yami smiled, watching as Yugi carried the groceries from the room, and sighed. No matter what Yugi was, the dark half or the light half, his personality had certainly not changed. 

"'Kay!! What's for snack!!?" Shinta giggled, squirming out of his fathers grasp, and running for the kitchen, the sound of crashing soon followed, and two boys scampering out the back door. Yami sighed, and headed toward what he knew would surely be a disaster zone. Tomato sauce had, for some unknown reason, come to coat the kitchen floor, along with a bottle of vinegar, and Yami's tiny stash of sake...... 

  


//Aibou, maybe we should have stayed and cleaned up the mess....// Yugi thought as the two panting boys arrived at the park, and bag of cookies held under Shinta's arm. Shinta stopped, gasping for breath, and shook his head. 

/Nah, Dad'll understand. Besides, it's his fault. He's the one who put the cookies so high up!/ Shinta insisted, and Yugi sighed, heading toward the swings, Shinta tossing him the cookies. 

//Okay, but it's not my fault if we get in trouble....// Yugi stopped in his tracks, staring at the scene in front of him. Memories flashed briefly in his mine, throwing him to the ground, clutching his head, screaming in pain. 

Shinta, much to his horror, was unable to contact his yami through their mental link, pain, confusion, and intense sorrow overwhelming the short red head, darkness filling his vision..... 

  


Yugi's eyes blinked open, his mind muddy, the room a blaring white. There was a beeping somewhere to his left, and an odd smell to the air. It was faintly familiar, but so distant that he ignored it, trying to sit up. 

"Shhh, you shouldn't move." Yami whispered, gently forcing Yugi to lay down once more. Yugi's violet eyes begged for an explanation. 

"Where's Shinta? Is he all right!?" Yugi demanded suddenly, trying to sit up again, his eyes flashing crimson. Yami smiled, and nodded. 

"He's fine. He's sleeping. It's you that I'm worried about. What happened? All Shinta can say is that you collapsed, screaming." Yami whispered, staring at his hikari. Yugi looked at his hands, resting his back against the bed board, wondering briefly over what words to use. 

"I'm not quite sure. I saw the playground, and it was like I had been there before. And then, then so much flashed through my mind, so fast..... There was nothing I could do, it hurt so much....." Yugi sobbed, burying his face in his hands, Yami rubbing his back soothingly, quite aware of what had happened now. 

But, he knew that he couldn't just blurt out the answer to Yugi. So many years had passed, and a lot had changed. Not to mention the fact that to face all of it, including the how of why Yugi was sealed, might prove too painful for the sensitive blonde boy. It may even prove fatal, if anything even nearly intense as today's flashing memories had proven to be. 

"It's okay, Yugi. Everything is going to be fine. The doctors say your mind is simply over stressed. You just have to rest a little, and take it easy." Yami explained, wondering how he would be able, if he would ever be able, to explain the truth to the young boy. 

A nurse opened the hospital door softy, and looked at Yami. The blonde man nodded, and stood up, smiling reassuringly at Yugi, patting his head softly. Yugi looked up, a tear escaping his wide, innocent eyes. 

"Don't worry, everything will be just fine. Now rest." Yami smiled, and left, turning out the lights as he closed the door. Yugi lay back in the bed, staring up into the familiar darkness...... 

  


"Yay!!! You're back!!! You're lucky, the teachers say you don't have to do the make-up homework!! And _all_ the girls in school are asking about you!!" Shinta sniggered at the last comment as Yugi's blush deepened to a tomato red. Yami sighed, and rolled his eyes. Some things never changed, and little boys were among them. 

"Yes, well, no homework or not, Yugi still has to attend school tomorrow. And for that, he needs his rest. Come on Shinta, it's time for you to be in bed as well..." Yami trailed off, and Shinta sighed, goose stepping from the room. Yugi smiled, and closed his eyes, the lights going off around him once more as Yami shut the bedroom door. 

/Yugi?/ Shinta asked nervously, afraid that he would meet the painful emotions of Yugi's breakdown once more. Yugi smiled. 

//Yes, hikari?// 

/Are you really all right? When I tried to contact you.... it was so painful./ Shinta whispered, and Yugi bit his lip silently, fading his form into his spirit room, walking over to Shinta's domain. He found it easier to explain when face to face with people, even if only in a mental representation. 

"Yugi?" Shinta looked up, startled. His soul room was much as Yugi's had been, before he had been sealed. Toys were spread everywhere, and Yugi had to pick his way carefully through, just to reach his aibou. 

"Hi, Shinta. I thought it would be easier to talk face to face." Yugi smiled. Shinta nodded enthusiastically. 

"This is sooooo cool!!!" Yugi smiled, sitting down on the bed next to his hikari, who was clutching a karibo plushie. 

"Is there something wrong?" Yugi asked, sensing something askew with Shinta, who was a tad paler than natural, his lips a tinted blue. Shinta shook his head nervously. 

"No, nothing at all. Everything's fine! You said you were going to tell me what happened, remember?" Shinta insisted, clutching the karibo to his chest. Yugi frowned, quit sure of his sense. His eyes darkened, and stared at his aibou. 

"Hikari, I can't help if you don't tell me.... You really must trust you, I'll never hurt you." Yugi said, and Shinta stared at the karibo nervously. 

"Do you promise not to tell? Not anyone, especially not Dad!" Shinta said, staring intently at his yami. Yugi sighed and, against his better judgment, nodded. 

"I promise, hikari. Please, tell me what's troubling you." 

"It...... it started a few months ago. The pain. It throbs at my heart a lot." Shinta whispered. Yugi's eyes went wide. 

"You have to tell someone, aibou!! This is serious!!" Yugi shouted frantically. Shinta shook his head, tears dripping down his face, soaking into his karibo. 

"No, I can't. The same thing happened to Mama, and then Dad took her to the doctors, and the hospital, and she died. She died, Yugi!!! The doctors killed her!! And I'm all Dad has left. If I go to the hospital, Dad will be all alone. I can't leave him all alone Yugi!" Shinta sobbed, and Yugi pulled him into an embrace, rubbing his back as he let his hikari sob himself to sleep, tears roaming down his own cheeks as he wondered what he was going to do..... 

  


Sorry that it took me so long to update, I had a bit of a writers block!! 

Okay, so it was more like a mountain, but I did update!! 

R&R please, people!!! I refuse to put the next chapter up until I get 35 reviews!!! 


	5. Not too late

Part Five 

Not too late... 

Yugi stared at the ceiling, the lights of cars passing on the street below tracking across the white paint. He couldn't sleep, his nerves still jumpy, his mind deeply troubled. His hikari was dying slowly, painfully, and alone. Shinta refused to let him tell anyone, to get him help, and it was screaming across his thoughts that if the tiny red hair boy died, it would be his fault. 

"Aibou, you just need to let me get you help, please." a tear slid from the corner of Yugi's violet eye as he finally drifted off to sleep, still deeply concerned.... 

  


"Come on Yugi!!! Are you always this slow, we're going to be late!!!" Shinta shouted, dashing through the kitchen, and grabbing Yugi's arm, hauling him away from the table and towards the door. Yugi yelped, and Yami rolled his eyes. 

The ancient pharoh could still remember a time when Yugi had done the same for him every morning, before he had been sealed. Yami wiped a tear away from his eyes silently, a smile on his face. 

"Have fun at school, you two, and study hard!!" Yami shouted as the two ran down the sidewalk, closing the door. He checked the clock with grim determination, it would be an hour before the shop opened.... 

  


"Oh gods, we were all so worried!! I mean, you both went to the hospital, and everything!!" Setsuko went on and on, fretting over Yugi, who was blushing an intense crimson. 

"I told you all those chocolate bars would be bad for you, dude! And this just proves it!" Seita laughed, earning a nasty glare from Setsuko, and promtly ducked behind Shinta. 

"Hey, don't get me involved in this!" Shinta squeaked, trying to run from Setsuko's line of sight. 

Setsuko sighed, rolling her eyes, and tossed her head in air, her silky black hair smacking the still reddened Yugi in the face. Setsuko, being her usual, somewhat over flirtatious self, came to is rescue, cooing sorries. Shinta rolled his eyes, and grabbed Yugi's arm with a sigh. 

/If I don't get you out of here, you're going to get eaten alive! Didn't you ever deal wth girls before you were sealed!?/ Shinta thought, slumping the still nervous Yugi in his seat. 

//I'm sorry, aibou, but I can't really remember before I was sealed. Please tell me that not all girls are like that!// Yugi gulped, imagining an entire world poulated with ravenous, flirty teenage girls. He was now very nervous. Shinta sighed, and sweat dropped. 

/No, Yugi, it isn't. Setsuko is just one of a kind. She's just being friendly, but if you piss her off, it's your funeral.../ Shinta trailed off, wincing noticibly. Yugi looked over concerned. 

//Are you all right, aibou?// 

/Yeah, I'm fine./ Shinta forced his mental voice to sound normal. Yugi nodded, and began to pay attention to the lecturing teach, still very, very concerned.... 

  


"Hey Dad!!" Shinta shouted, throwing the door open. Yami smiled, and waved, focusing his attention on some cutomers once more. Shinta rolled his eyes, and went into the kitchen, followed by Yugi. 

"At least he left the cookies out this time." Yugi noted, very glad that neither he nor Shinta would have to attempt anymore gymnastic stunts. 

"Yeah, cookies..." Shinta winced, grabbing at his chest, his heart pounding, trying to escape his body. 

//Aibou, is something wrong?// Yugi looked over at the red haired boy as he collapsed to the ground, clutching at his chest, his breath coming in ragged gasps. Waves of pain washed over Shinta, frightening Yugi. 

"Hikari, please, you must get help!" Yugi pleaded, lowering the red haired boy to the floor as he gritted his teeth in pain once more, shaking his head, trying to concentrate on Yugi's voice, and not the encroaching darkness. 

"No.... NO!!!" Shinta shrieked softly, his voice lost as the mash of pain overwhelmed his mind. 

"AIBOU!!!" Yugi shrieked, Yami slamming the door open, his eyes resting on a seen of one of his deepest nightmares. 

Yugi crouched on the floor, Shinta's head resting in his lap. His precious son's breathing came in strained gasps, his face too pale, his lips a blue hue. Tears streaked down Yugi's cheeks as he looked up, struggling to catch his won breath between sobs. 

"Please, he needs help!" Yugi pleaded, his eyes glassy. Yami nodded, almost ripping the phone from the wall as he grabbed it, dialing 911 as fast as his hands could move, praying that he wasn't too late, again...... 

  


I am sooooo sorry that it took me so long to write this chapter, that it's this bad, and that it took so long to post it!!! I had a HUGE paper due, and sorta had to work on that. And my new web site!!! 

www.geocities.com/two_ni 

All my stuff goes up there first, by about twenty minutes!!!! So, ff.net readers, have no fear, I post here too!!! Besides, this fic will never get kicked off for being inapropriate, I simply don't write that way!!! 


	6. Lost Memories

** The Sealing of a Soul **

Part Six 

Lost Memories 

Yami paced the floor of the waiting room, his nerves driving him insane, the sounds of Yugi sobbing filling the background. Yami sighed, looking at the clock once more. It nearly three am, and still they had not heard anything since Shinta had been pulled in for emergency heart surgery. The doctors did not expect him to survive. 

"Shhh, shhh, he'll be fine, Yugi. Shinta's a strong kid, he'll pull through." Yami whispered, sitting next to Yugi, trying to comfort him, even as his own heart was tearing itself apart. 

"But it's all my fault! If I had told someone, he wouldn't be here!" Yugi sobbed, burying his face in his hands, tears rolling freely. Yami was half way frightened that his former aibou was about to drown himself. 

"It's not your fault, Yugi. I should have noticed something was wrong before now as well. I shouldn't have seen something...." Yami trailed off, his composure slipping as he remembered when he had come home that night so long ago, to find his beloved wife unconscious on the floor. Her heart had been too weak, and now Shinta was suffering of it as well. 

"Mr Mouto?" a doctor entered the waiting room, pulling off his face mask. Yami stood up anxiously, desperately frightened by what he might be told. So many what ifs ran through his mind in that moment that he was afraid that he might never hear what the doctor was telling him. 

"Yes, how is Shinta, is he okay? Will he be okay!?" Yami demanded, resisting the urge to shake the man senseless. 

"Please, calm down Mr Motou. Shinta suffered a massive heart attack, he's lucky to have survived. However.... he won't be able to survive the next one. His heart is very weak, and though we have put him on the transplant list, the chances of a donor becoming available for someone his age and size are very slim. I'm sorry." the doctor tried to break the news to Yami softly, Yugi sobbing even harder, coming quite close to actually drowning himself in his own tears as he hiccuped convulsively. 

"Is.... how long, please...." Yami asked, tears beginning to stream down his face. The doctor sighed, shaking his head. 

"There's no way to tell, exactly. But, unless he gets a donor soon, not long. We've put him on some machines, but I seriously doubt that he'll last more than a month, maybe a year, at most." the doctor sighed, looking down at Yugi who was now balling full out, unable to control his sorrow. His precious hikari was dying, and he could do nothing to help him. 

"Please, may we see him?" Yami asked softly, afraid to speak up, lest his voice crack, his heart already shattered. 

The doctor nodded, leaving the two to comfort each other..... 

  


//Aibou?// Yugi asked mentally, looking through the glass at his precious hikari. Shinta stirred, his eyes fluttering briefly as Yugi walked into the room, slumping into the chair set up next to Shinta's bed. 

/Yugi? Where am I? What happened?/ Shinta asked faintly, his mind still heavily drugged. Yugi sighed, trying to think of a way to explain to his aibou what was happening. 

//You're...... you're in the hospital. Oh, Hikari!// Yugi sobbed mentally, tears streaming down his face, a heart monitor beeping softly in the background. 

/Yugi, what's going on!?/ Shinta demanded, the heart pace speeding up slightly. Yugi tried to control his emotions, unaware of the change in his aibou's heart rhythm. 

//You had a heart attack. The doctors...// Yugi could not bring himself to finish off the sentence as the tears began to stream silently from the tiny red head's eyes. 

/I'm not going to live, am I?/ Shinta asked, and Yugi could not bring himself to answer, his face puffy, eyes bloodshot. 

"Yugi..... I'm.... sorry...." Shinta whispered, struggling to catch his breath from tiny effort speaking required, his monitor beginning to lag. 

"No, Shinta, it isn't your fault!" Yugi sobbed, clutching his aibou's hand as his tears dropped upon the bed. 

"No... I..... made..... you... promise....." Shinta gasped, sweat beading on his face, the heart monitor beginning to go wild, ignored by both young boys. 

"Shinta, please, you must live!" Yugi begged, the millennium puzzle glowing lightly on the bed, next to Shinta's chest. 

/I'm sorry Yugi, but I'm just so tired.../ Shinta's thoughts were beginning to fade as his heart began to strain. 

//NO!!! Shinta!! Please, my aibou, you can't die, I can't live without you!// Yugi sobbed, clutching Shinta's hand. Shinta smiled faintly, his mind slipping into the darkness of unconsciousness. 

"Shinta!" Yugi sobbed, Yami entering the room only to see his former aibou sobbing, his son's eyes closed, his face peaceful, the heart monitor steady.... 

  


"But, what's wrong with him!?" Yami demanded of the doctor, glad that Yugi was not in the room to hear the painful explanation of what was happening to Shinta. 

"We, we don't know for certain. He seems to have been under a lot of mental strain, and the only way his mind could deal with it was to shut down entirely. But, it seems that it is now unwilling to wake up. He may be afraid of facing whatever it was that gave him that mental strain. 

"Tell me, did anything sudden happen before he slipped into his coma? Did he get a new teacher, was he raised a grade level?" the doctor was asking the questions in Shinta's best interest, Yami knew, but he also knew he could not reveal to the doctor what the true cause of the mental strain might be. 

Yugi. 

"No, nothing. But, the transplant was successful, yes? Maybe he's just resting, he might wake up, maybe?" Yami asked hopefully, trying to figure out a way to break it to Yugi that he must not, under any circumstances, contact his son mentally. 

The phone rang, causing Yami to jump suddenly, the doctor smiling apologetically as he answered it, his face brightening as he set it down once more. 

"Well, Mr Motou, it seems that maybe you were right after all. Shinta seems to have woken up!" Yami bolted for the door, not caring how rude he seemed. His precious son had just woken up after three long months of sleep..... 

  


"Well, you seem to be a healthy young boy, if a bit short!" the doctor smiled, Shinta laughing as the doctor rubbed his head of unruly red hair. Yugi stood behind Yami nervously, afraid that coming to close to Shinta may cause mental strain, as Yami had explained. 

"Shinta, do you remember me?" Yami asked. He had been warned before hand that Shinta may not remember something's. There was no telling how a person in a coma might respond to reality once they awoke. 

"Yes, Dad, I remember you!" Shinta smiled. Yami sighed with relief, Yugi taking a step forward. 

"And me, do you remember me?" Yugi asked softly. 

Shinta stared at him for a moment, examining him, looking the short blonde over, and finally shook his head, breaking Yugi's heart at the same time. 

"You look kinda like Dad, but no, not really. Am I supposed to?" Shinta asked, glancing questioningly at his father...... 

  


  


Sorry that it was such a cliffhanger! ^_^ 

I've been so busy with my new web site, that I haven't really had time to write and update the story!! ^_^; 

Gomen, Gomen!!! ^_^; 


	7. Late Night Phone Call

The Sealing of a Soul 

Part Seven 

Late Night Phone Call   


  


Yugi stared at his hands, sitting on his bed. Only the light of the full moon trailing though the window looked in upon him. The young boy sobbed, tears streaming down his swollen face. His aibou, his hikari, no longer remembered him. He was nothing anymore, alone in the Universe, adrift without a boat any longer. 

"Yugi, please, you need sleep." Yami whispered, coming into the room silently. Yugi made no move to acknowledge his presence. 

"Yugi, please. Shinta just needs time to recover. He'll remember you, he just needs a little time right now." Yami whispered, trying to keep from crying himself. Yugi still had no memory of his former life, and Yami had given up hope of hi former hikari ever remembering again. 

"Good." Yugi whispered, the first words he had said since Shinta had come home from the hospital, a month ago. 

A tear trailed slowly down Yami's face. 

"Yugi, please, you don't mean that." Yami pleaded, more tears flowing down his face, crimson eyes glowing sadly. 

Yugi sat unmoving, pointedly ignoring Yami. Yami sighed sadly, closing the door behind him as he left the room, Yugi staring at his hands, crying in the dark..... 

  


"Hey." a girls voice sounded from the other end of the phone. Yami's eyebrow lifted curiously. 

"May I speak to Bakura please?" Yami asked, looking at the clock, hoping it wasn't too terribly late. 

"Hmm? Sure, HEY DAD!!!!" the girl screamed, nearly shattering Yami's ear drums as he hurriedly whipped the thing away from his ear. 

"Hello?" a familiar, albeit older, voice sounded on the other end of the phone. Yami sighed nervously. He had not talked to the Tomb Raider since High School graduation, many, many years ago. 

"Bakura?" Yami asked, wondering if Bakura even still remembered him, though he doubted the ex tomb robber would ever forget trivial things like Pharaoh's and the such. 

"Yes? Who is this!" Bakura demanded. Yami rolled his eyes, sinking into a kitchen chair. Bakura hadn't changed all that much over the years, so it seemed. He was still as hasty and as hot tempered as ever. 

"Bakura, it's me, Yami." Yami sighed, hearing the sudden silence on the other end of the phone. 

"Tsuru, I'm on the phone! Leave, now!" Bakura ordered. Yami could faintly hear a few choice comments from Bakura's daughter. 

"Yami, what's going on? I thought you had died, or something, a long time ago." Bakura chortled, and Yami rolled his eyes. They were great enemies, and semi decent friends, at times. 

"No, I didn't die. I nearly thought you had, it took me forever to find your phone number." Yami sighed, running his fingers over the cracked kitchen table. He really should get a new one. 

"So? What made the great Pharaoh go searching for a lowly tomb robber? This has got to be good." Yami could practically see Bakura grinning his head off. 

"How's Ryou doing? It's been so long since High School." Yami asked politely, dancing around the subject warily. He still wasn't sure why he had called Bakura in the first place. 

"He's doing fine. He moved out to Kyoto, you know. He teaches English at the University. You still didn't answer my question, why did you call, Yami?" Bakura asked, caution practically screamed across the phone. Yami sighed, staring at his hand. 

"It's..... it's about Yugi...." Yami trailed off, trying to regain his composure, dangerously close to breaking down once more. 

"What about him, Pharaoh? You never did tell us how he died....." Bakura trailed off, thinking. "You killed him, didn't you?" 

"He never died. He.... he was sealed in the puzzle." 

"He was WHAT!?!?!?!?" Bakura shouted, nearly shattering Yami's eardrums once more. 

"I.... I accidentally sealed him within the puzzle. Bakura, please, just listen!" Yami begged, no longer caring how he across anymore. Bakura sighed, and stayed silent. 

"He.... My son, Shinta, he assembled the Puzzle recently. But, when Yugi came back, he.... he can't remember anything, Bakura!!! He can't remember anything at all, he thinks he was always in the Puzzle!" Yami kept his voice quiet, afraid to awaken or alert Shinta and Yugi. Bakura just sighed. 

"Then, I'm sorry Yami. But I still don't see why you called me. What can I do? He wouldn't want to remember me in the first place, so I don't see why you called me." Bakura pointed out. More tears rolled down Yami's face. 

"You were.... you were harsh to Ryou, back then..." Yami was cut off as Bakura swore, in their native Egyptian. 

"If you called to be cruel, Pharaoh, I will kill you myself!" Bakura spat. Yami sighed. 

"But, he, that day, he nearly died, he wanted to. Please, Bakura, how did you convince him to stop!" Yami pleaded, his voice cracking, sobbing. 

"Yami, what's this getting at? Yugi's not..... Oh Gods, he hasn't, but you said he couldn't remember! Why would he try!?" Bakura demanded, thick tears rolling down Yami's face. 

"Shinta was sick, he had to have a heart transplant, and the mental link, it was too much for him, for his mind. His brain wiped everything clean, up tot he day before he completed the Puzzle. Shinta can't remember Yugi. He probably won't ever." Yami sobbed, his hands shaking. 

"I... I see.... So... Yugi is... stranded. He can't remember anything, and his... his hikari can't remember him...." Bakura sighed heavily, shaking his head. 

"Please, Bakura, I don't know what to do!" Yami hiccuped loudly in the dark, silent house. 

"I.... I'm sorry Yami, but I can offer no advice here. Just..... just watch him. I didn't let Ryou out of my sight for nearly a year after.... after the incident. I suggest the same to you. He's fragile right now.... try... try to get him interested in something..." Bakura sighed, fingering his address book silently, flipping easily to Ryou's phone number. 

"Thank you, Bakura..." 

"And Yami, don't pressure him. Don't try to make him remember anything." Bakura whispered, the phone buzzing softly as Yami hung up. He dialed a long-distance number with well practiced ease. 

"Hey, Ryou...."....... 

  


'Aibou, please, why can't you remember me? Am I worth that little? I am I so very, very worthless?' Yugi thought to himself, turning the glittering dagger over in his hands. He had flinched the cutlery from the kitchen earlier that day, making sure no one had noticed. 

No answer came to him, and Yugi was too afraid to open the mental link. Afraid that Shinta would be injured because of it, like he had been injured when Yugi hadn't told anyone about his hikari's illness. 

Yugi plunged the dagger into his arm with sickening precision, digging into the soft, white flesh, blood surging forth, dripping sloppily onto the carpet, splashing crimson hues in the darkness, the inky red lapping at the bed sheets edge. 

Not satisfied with one cut, Yugi began to slash wildly, his left hand limp, the muscles severed, his arms a mass of torn flesh, his skin an eerie white hue. 

The door creaked open slowly, and then faster as Yami saw what Yugi was doing, a small lake forming on the floor, Yugi slipping gently into it as the enormous blood loss overtook his senses. 

"Yugi, please!! Why!" Yami sobbed, picking the small boy up, and shaking him gently, searching for a pulse. Yugi smiled weakly, surprising Yami. He hadn't thought the small boy would be alive, let alone conscious. 

"Yami..... I.... remember..... My Yami......" Yugi sighed, his eyes a cheerful amethyst, aglow with lost memories as his spirit faded, leaving Yami alone in the room, clutching a cold, dark, empty body....... 

  


  


Gomen Ne!! ^_^; 

I know, what a crappy way to end the series!! ^_^; 

But, there was really nothing left, Yugi was fading, his mind was assaulted by sorrow, and he was always a dramatic character, so.... ^_^; 

And no, I will not write anything for Ryou and Bakura (yaoi or non) if you request it. I don't see any story idea there, yet. If I do, I'll be the first to post them I'm sure!! ^_^ 

R&R please!!! 


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